The Vampire in Film: The Undead AsCinematic Expression of the Living (ENG 264)
Term: 2024-2025 Academic Year Summer Term
Description
Since the 1922 premiere of F.W. Murnau's Nosferatu, vampire films have been a staple of cinema. Vampire films are more than gory blockbusters created to scare people as they eat popcorn. Cinema featuring the undead function as reflections of society's fears, tabboos, and issues, turning a critical lens on the living as critique and commentary. Vampire films have also been at the forefront of cinema more broadly, harnessing technological innovations and popular trends in their narratives. This course will introduce students to the folkloric origins of the vampire before turning briefly to 19th c. literary influences. From there, students will examine a century's worth of key vampire films, engaging in critical film analysis while conducting their own original research. Students in this course will be able to see how our monsters are more than just things that go bump in the night -- they are us.